Kazim-Richards hauls back Bolton

Nobody could have predicted this fixture would serve up a goal feast, but Sam Allardyce had other reasons for rubbing his eyes at the end. A match that had belonged to Bolton for so long turned in the space of three frenetic second-half minutes as Sheffield United recovered from two goals down to steal a point and move out of the relegation zone. Bolton had been coasting, only to be washed up by the tidal wave of late home pressure.

The visitors were already celebrating victory when Kevin Davies added to El Hadji Diouf's excellent first-half goal, and that complacency proved to be their undoing. United summoned a belligerent response, kick-started by Rob Hulse's thumping header in the 70th minute. With Bolton still reeling from that setback, Colin Kazim-Richards marked his introduction as a substitute with a superbly taken second goal after Jussi Jaaskelainen failed to gather cleanly at Danny Webber's feet.

Allardyce was crestfallen, aghast at his side's failure to come away with three points from a game they had dominated. 'Everyone is completely disappointed and dejected,' he said. 'We should have been home and dry.' His misery was compounded by the two gilt-edged chances Abdoulaye Faye and Kevin Nolan squandered late on. 'Faye's should have broken the net,' lamented Allardyce.

Neither player managed to score, allowing Neil Warnock to take the credit for his substitutions. The arrival of Christian Nade, Nicky Law and Kazim-Richards provided the home side with much-needed impetus and, ultimately, swung the match back in United's favour. Until then there had barely been a goal threat from the home side, with Bolton's defence spending most of their time watching their colleagues in front of them toy with their opponents.

An early lead was seized through Diouf, wonderfully converting after Phil Jagielka hesitated. That moment of beauty contrasted sharply with the Bolton forward's behaviour moments earlier when he refused to shake Paddy Kenny's hand after an altercation. Allardyce claimed he did not see the incident and he must have wished the same was true of the goals Bolton conceded after Davies had drilled a low shot into a bottom corner.

Mikele Leigertwood created the first, swinging in an inviting cross that Hulse climbed majestically to head beyond Jaaskelainen, before Kazim-Richards showed both technique and composure to place his 25-yard shot into the unguarded net. 'It must have felt like a defeat for them,' said Warnock. There was no need to put that suggestion to Allardyce.